This week’s major post may have to wait a couple of extra days before it appears. As the behind the scenes writer I have had to succumb to a recent illness. This past Saturday I was diagnosed with Shingles. The virus has infected a nerve connecting my left ear to my left eye. I’m assuming not everyone knows exactly what Shingles is or exactly what it feels like…so I’ve pasted some additional info from WebMD.

What is Shingles?

Shingles is a viral infection of the nerve roots. It causes severe pain and often causes a rash on one side of the body, the left or right. The rash appears in a band, a strip, or a small area. Most people who get shingles will get better and will not get it again.

Shingles occurs when the virus that causes chickenpox starts up again in your body. After you get better from chickenpox, the virus ”sleeps” (is dormant) in your nerve roots. In some people, it stays dormant forever. In others, the virus “wakes up” when disease, stress, or aging weakens the immune system. It is not clear why this happens. But after the virus becomes active again, it can only cause shingles, not chickenpox.
You can’t catch shingles from someone else who has shingles.

Shingles symptoms happen in stages. At first you may have severe migraine type headaches or be extra sensitive to light. You may also feel like you have the flu but not have a fever.

Later, you may feel constant itching, tingling, or severe intense pain in a certain area. That’s where a band, strip, or small area of rash may occur a few days later. The rash turns into clusters of blisters. The blisters fill with fluid and then crust over. It takes 2 to 4 weeks for the blisters to heal, and they may leave scars.

Not a particularly graceful illness, but that’s okay! We’re making it through. I hope everyone had a good weekend and I’m hoping to be back in action very soon!